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As the governor of the Alliance principality of Hearthglen, Tirion lived a comfortable life, well-respected by his subjects and loved by his wife Karanda and son Taelan. Both a great warrior and a just ruler, Tirion was renowned throughout the Kingdom of Lordaeron. In spite of his acclaimed military prowess, Tirion's experience as a paladin during the orcish invasions had taught him to value peace. After the wars were over, Tirion prayed every night that no conflict would ever bring harm to his subjects again.

One day, he encountered an old orc hermit living in an abandoned tower. The two immediately battled and traded blows until a piece of the ruined tower collapsed on Tirion, knocking him senseless. He awoke in his bed days later and discovered that he had been found badly beaten, tied to his saddle, and had been healed by his ambitious second, Barthilas.

Realizing that the orc had saved him, Tirion set out and retraced his steps back to the tower. The orc Eitrigg told Tirion that, before the coming to Azeroth, the orcs had been a noble society rooted in shamanism. After the war, he had left the corrupt Horde. Tirion, seeing great honor in Eitrigg, promised to keep his existence a secret, returning to his people and informing them that the orc had been dealt with and was not a threat.

Tirion Fordring and Eitrigg

Barthilas was not so confident, and called Saidan Dathrohan to come and settle the matter himself. Dathrohan picked up the trail and led a group of hunters into the woods, where they found Eitrigg. During the orc's capture, Tirion fought against Dathrohan's men, prompting Barthilas to gleefully note that his actions were treasonous. Tirion was brought to Stratholme to stand trial.

Despite Karandra's pleas to forget his honor and tell the jury what they wanted to hear, Tirion, hoping to be an example to his son, told the court exactly what had happened. Ultimately, the jury of Admiral Daelin Proudmoore, Arch-Mage Antonidas, Archbishop Alonsus Faol, and Prince Arthas Menethil decided that since Tirion had assaulted Alliance soldiers, he could no longer be a member of the Knights of the Silver Hand and was doomed to exile. Uther the Lightbringer performed a ceremony to strip Tirion of his powers and sent him home to gather some supplies.

Desperate to prevent Eitrigg from being executed for war crimes, Tirion rode back to Stratholme, where he attacked Eitrigg's guards. Surprised, they still managed to subdue him, until a group of orcs stormed into the city. Tirion used the distraction to free Eitrigg and flee the city.

When they were in the wilds, Tirion saw that Eitrigg was near death, and did the only thing he could do; call upon the powers of the Light to heal the orc who had saved him. To his surprise, he still had the powers blessed by the Light and Eitrigg was saved.

They abruptly found themselves surrounded by orcs and a new Warchief, Thrall, who approached Eitrigg and invited him back into the Horde — which had since reverted to its shamanistic roots once more. Eitrigg was thrilled to accept. Before he left with his people, Eitrigg proclaimed that Tirion and he were brothers, bound by blood and honor. Through his actions, Tirion also gained the undying respect of Thrall, one of the few humans he holds in such high regard, and which continues to this day.

Tirion remained in Lordaeron, to watch his son Taelan be inducted into the Silver Hand. His son later became the lord of Mardenholde. Tirion's wife told his son that Tirion had died, and even took him to a false grave at the Undercroft, where Taelan buried the toy warhammer his father had given him in his memory.

He was dismayed to find later that his son, Taelan, joined the Scarlet Crusade, and even became the highlord of that order. Nonetheless, he kept watching his son from afar, and even enlisted some adventurers to help him as he and a few Crusaders became trapped in the small village of Cinderhome, surrounded by Scourge forces who were interrupting the Crusade's attempt to re-settle the area.[4] Later, Tirion turned to adventurers yet again to have them collect mementos of his son's past which finally enabled him to convince his son to leave the Crusade, only to see him killed in the attempt. Spurred by his son's death, Tirion resolved to reform the original Silver Hand as a force of good in the world.

Tirion Fordring is a level 61 elitequest giver located by a cottage near the southwestern end of Light's Hope Chapel in the contested territory of the Eastern Plaguelands. He readily accepts help from both the Horde and Alliance in his quest line, in following his assertions that race does not dictate honor, and from what he learned from his encounter with Eitrigg.

After an interaction between Darion and Tirion, and then Darion and Alexandros, the Lich King will appear and cast a spell that incapacitates Tirion. Darion, wielding the Corrupted Ashbringer once held by his father, throws the sword to Tirion where it is purified. Tirion then charges towards Arthas who runs and eventually escapes. It is here that Tirion makes his vow to destroy Arthas, thus uniting the Argent Dawn and the Knights of the Silver Hand into the Argent Crusade. Darion also pledges his Knights of the Ebon Blade to the cause.

Tirion can also be found in Icecrown at the Argent Vanguard, talking to the Ebon Watcher. Through their dialogue with each other, you learn the Ebon Watcher is actually Darion Mograine. Darion Mograine talks pessimistically, saying they cannot win when the Lich King is not shackled to any virtues of the Light. Tirion states he will not lower himself to the Scourge's level; they will do this with honor or else become the monster they are trying to kill.

Reasoning that a small force of elite combatants would fare better against the Scourge than a large army (which would provide more bodies to raise), Tirion set up the Argent Tournament and Crusader's Coliseum in Icecrown, where he could test the best warriors the Alliance and Horde had to offer.

Tirion leads the Ashen Verdict into Icecrown Citadel, and eventually faces the Lich King in battle at the Frozen Throne. Arthas freezes Tirion in a block of ice, slays the champions he brought with him, and prepares to raise them as agents of the Scourge. As the Lich King begins casting his spell, Tirion manages to break free of the ice and shatter Frostmourne with the Ashbringer. The souls that were trapped inside the runeblade turn on the Lich King, giving Fordring and his champions (who are resurrected by the spirit of Terenas) an opportunity to defeat him.

After his victory over the Lich King, Tirion will return to Lordaeron to reclaim his old home, Hearthglen, from the remnants of the Scarlet Crusade. Tirion will be removed from his river-side hovel in the Eastern Plaguelands and will be located in Mardenholde Keep in Cataclysm.[5]

Rising from the ranks of a knight and later a paladin, Tirion Fordring was a man of honor — and his commitment to upholding his honor no matter the cost often brought him into conflict with his family and friends. His wife Karandra Fordring often lamented the sacrifices she had to make in order to adapt to her husband's tendency to place his personal honor above everything else - his family included. So, for instance, when Fordring attempted to explain to his wife and to his long-time friend Arden that his commitment to saving the life of Eitrigg was a matter of honor, he encountered, for the most part, a total lack of understanding, with both Arden and Karandra arguing that he also has a responsibility to his family and his subjects — a responsibility he should not neglect in the name of honor. Tirion's honor, therefore, was the ultimate cause of his downfall — during his trial, he was offered an opportunity to be restored to good standing within the Alliance if only he would renounce the vow he gave to Eitrigg. Tirion refused, saying that his honor precluded him from doing so.

In the end, Tirion Fordring paid heavily for the honor he held in such high esteem. Not only was he stripped of his office and estates, but his family — Karandra Fordring and Taelan — refused to accompany him into exile, his wife stating that she would not let him ruin their lives as he had ruined his own. Thus, after his rescue of Eitrigg from the gallows in Stratholme, honor was very much the only thing Tirion still had.

After his exile and the fall of Lordaeron to the Scourge, Tirion fell into inactivity, feeling there was no reason for him to fight. That all changed, however, with the death of Taelan.

Filled with righteous anger at the loss of his beloved son, Tirion vowed to reestablish the Knights of the Silver Hand, to oppose the spread of evil in the world.

You are assuming that there are more orcs out there, Barthilas. I was there, and I saw none. I will not sound the call to arms before we've confirmed the facts. This is not the time to start jumping at shadows. We must remain calm and vigilant.

I will remain committed to the Alliance until my dying day. Of that, have no doubt. But I cannot disavow the oath I took. To do so would be to betray everything I am and everything we, as honorable men, hold dear.

After completing his first three quests, this conversation opens with Tirion, as part of the next quest in his chain:

I must apologize for not being entirely truthful with you in regards to my identity. I had to be certain you could be trusted — few people would have selflessly lent assistance to an old and forgotten hermit.

You have proven yourself as one of those people: A person of integrity and honor.

Thank you, Tirion. What of your identity?

My son, Taelan, was only a child when I was found guilty of treason and banished by the Alliance to live a life in exile. I chose to remain here so that I could watch over him; to somehow insure that he would grow up an honorable man.

As I had hoped, he took my place as lord of Mardenholde; but in a cruel twist of fate, joined the ranks of the Scarlet Crusade. He is now their Highlord, <race>.

You must believe me, <race>; Taelan is a good man. He needs to remember...remember what it is to be noble and honorable. I know that in his heart, he knows what he does is wrong. Will you help him? Will you help him remember?

May your soul burn in anguish, Isillien! Light give me strength to battle this fiend. Face me, coward. Face the faith and strength that you once embodied.

Too long have I sat idle, gripped in this haze... this malaise, lamenting what could have been... what should have been. Your death will not have been in vain, Taelan. A new Order is born on this day...an Order which will dedicate itself to extinguishing the evil that plagues this world. An evil that cannot hide behind politics and pleasantries. This I promise...This I vow...

"Rise, Darion...and listen. We have all been witness to a terrible tragedy; the blood of good men has been shed upon this soil. Honorable knights, slain defending their lives...our lives. And while such things can never be forgotten, we must remain vigilant in our cause. The Lich King must answer for what he has done and must not be allowed to cause further destruction in our world! I make a promise to you now brothers and sisters: The Lich King will be defeated! On this day, I call for a union! The Argent Dawn and the Order of the Silver Hand will come together as one! We will succeed where so many before us have failed! We will take the fight to Arthas, and we will tear down the walls of Icecrown! The Argent Crusade comes for YOU, Arthas!"

The Ebon Watcher says: Nothing. There is nothing that you can do while the Light binds you. It controls you wholly, shackling you to the ground with its virtues.

Highlord Tirion Fordring says: Choose your words wisely, death knight. You stand amidst the company of the devoted.

The Ebon Watcher shakes his head.

The Ebon Watcher says: Look upon the field, Highlord. The Lich King has halted your advance completely and won the upper hand!

The Ebon Watcher says: The breach you created was sealed with Nerubian webbing almost as quickly as it was opened.

The Ebon Watcher says: Your soldiers are being used as living shields to stave off artillery fire in the Valley of Echoes, allowing the forces of the Lich King to assault your base without impediment.

The Ebon Watcher says: The Lich King knows your boundaries, Highlord. He knows that you will not fire on your own men. Do you not understand? He has no boundaries. No rules to abide.

Highlord Tirion Fordring says: We will do this with honor, Darion. We will not sink to the levels of the Scourge to be victorious. To do so would make us no better than the monster that we fight to destroy!

Highlord Tirion Fordring yells: This is our final stand. What happens here will echo through the ages. Regardless of outcome, they will know that we fought with honor. That we fought for the freedom and safety of our people.

Highlord Tirion Fordring yells: Remember, heroes, fear is your greatest enemy in these befouled halls. Steel your heart and your soul will shine brighter than a thousand suns. The enemy will falter at the sight of you. They will fall as the light of righteousness envelops them!

Strangely enough in the novel "Of Blood and Honor", Tirion's mount is described as a grey horse, yet in-game it is a chestnut horse. An explanation might be that he just gained another horse after his exile and named it after the previous one.